Springfield officials voice their concerns

SPRINGFIELD—The school district has engaged in comprehensive data collection for assessment, analysis and curriculum adjustment. The administration have serious concerns with the initial School Performance Profile, now the standard for the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Anthony Barber, Director of Teaching and Learning, and Gary Mattei, Director of Educational Services both addressed the issue by describing the process for the SPP described by the commonwealth as “a web-based resource for districts/schools to communicate performance results to various constituencies and assist districts and schools in aligning and focusing resources for continuous improvement.”

Concerns about data collection and reporting have already been raised by school districts. The websitepaschoolperformance.org opens with the disclaimer, “Data displayed on this site, if in error, will be updated as soon as possible upon a valid request from the associated Local Education Agency.” Data bases used by the commonwealth have not presented complete information. Barber said districts will have a “correction window.”

The SPP is comprised of 40 percent on achievement; 40 percent growth; 10 percent for closing achievement gaps among subgroups; and 10 percent on standard markers such as graduation and promotion rates. Districts and schools can get “extra credit” if a performing at high levels.

Barber used a baseball analogy to explain the challenges. A player with a .300 batting average might not achieve enough growth for a high score. Yet falling to .295 could incur penalties. A mediocre player could see substantial growth if up a dozen points.

Barber’s analogy may have softened the discussion, but several school directors were more direct and critical. For example, Barber said, since fourth graders are tested in science, and third graders have no science tests or scores, the state uses third grade reading scores.

“This is an artificial construct, and you can’t make it make sense,” said Doug Carney. Switching sports, he said, “It would be like grading the Eagles on Andy Reid’s record in Kansas City. We welcome anyone from the commonwealth to come explain this system so that it makes sense.”

The board had other concerns about state assessment tools. High school students are asked to take biology and algebra exams years after they have completed courses.

“We could interrupt the curriculum to give physics students a biology refresher, but we’ve chosen not to do that,” said Superintendent James Capolupo.

Mattei followed with the district’s highly successful and productive MAPS (Measure of Academic Progress) tests used since 2001. This pre- and post-test measures achievement and growth for individual students. Advantages include the adaptive nature of testing which adjusts to student responses; reports sent within one day; and teacher recommendations for tools and curriculum. This fits well with the district’s customization model, Carney noted. and provides a specific longitudinal look at students useful to teachers and parents.

The next SPP is due in January, and the administration will be updating information. With all the caveats provided, those interested can see the district’s profile on the website above.